Brad Hicks

ERWIN — A Unicoi County grand jury indicted a county man Monday who was previously arrested for allegedly dragging his girlfriend from a residence she refused to leave and threatening the home’s owner.

According to the Unicoi County Sheriff’s Department, Smith’s April arrest came after he and his girlfriend went to a residence on South Walnut Drive in Erwin. The sheriff’s department’s arrest report said Smith waited outside while his girlfriend entered the residence, possibly to retrieve clothing. The report said that while she was inside, she advised the home’s owner that she did not want to leave with Smith because “she was afraid of him.”

After realizing that his girlfriend was not coming back outside, Smith became “extremely hostile, violent, yelling and screaming very loudly” that he was not leaving without her, according to the report.

Officials said Smith approached the residence and began striking the front door and windows with his hands and feet. Officials said Smith’s girlfriend asked him to leave the residence several times and, when she opened the door slightly, Smith entered the home, grabbed her by the arm, and drug her from the home.

The arrest report said Smith’s girlfriend fell on the porch as she was being dragged and suffered cuts and abrasions to her feet, legs, arms and back. Smith was temporarily subdued by the home’s owner and another person at the home, but he was able to break free and return to his vehicle, where he retrieved a rifle and again approached the residence, according to the report.

Smith allegedly pointed the gun in the homeowner’s direction several times and threatened to put “a mushroom hole in his head,” as well as burn down his home and damage his vehicles, the report said.

After authorities arrived and Smith was taken into custody, a baggie containing marijuana and smoking pipes were found in his vehicle.